[0:00] Be a Daniel. So if you have your Bibles this morning, turn to the book of Daniel. Daniel chapter 1. We sing that song, Dare to be a Daniel. It's in your hymns. It's in there.
[0:17] It's a good song. I learned it actually from my father-in-law. We sang it, and this kind of is the reason why I made that sermon. And the Lord just kind of flooded it with it. So a little lesson on Daniel this morning, biographical by means, I guess, if you want to call it that.
[0:31] But titled, Dare to be a Daniel. And hopefully we get done with this in a reasonable time. The Bible is filled with many godly men and women who are worthy of emulation.
[0:43] One such a person is Daniel. Daniel, a man who obtained preeminence and the power in his lifetime. Look at Daniel chapter 8, and look at verse 1. If you're there, say amen.
[0:58] Amen. A couple more minutes. All right. And look at verse 1. In the third year of reign of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, came Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem, and besieged it.
[1:11] And the Lord gave Jehoiakim, king of Judah, into his hand with part of the vessels of the house of God, which he carried into the land of Shinar, to the house of his God. And he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his God.
[1:25] And the king spake Ashpenaz, the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel and the king's seed and of the princes.
[1:37] Look at verse 4. For children in whom was no blemish, but well favored and skillful in all wisdom and cunning and knowledge and understanding and science, and as such as had ability in them to stand in the king's palace, in whom they might teach the learnings of the tongue of the Chaldeans.
[1:56] And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king's meat and of the wine, which he drank, and so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king.
[2:09] Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names. For he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar, and to Hananiah of Shadrach, and to Mishael of Meshach, and to Azariah of Abednego.
[2:32] But verse 8 is mainly the topic, mainly kind of, he started out preeminent among the children of Israel. Look at verse 8, the Bible says, But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank.
[2:46] Therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuch that he might not defile himself. He started out preeminent among the children. So he started out, he had a good start. He purposed in his heart not to infiltrate or mess up his life by touching things that he shouldn't be touching.
[3:03] And as a Christian, we ought to be thinking about that. We shouldn't be entangled with the warfares of this world, or things about this world that we're supposed to be called out from. Let me pray first before I get started.
[3:15] Lord, thank you for the opportunity to preach, Lord, and to be in this church. God, I'm sorry for being hasty in this lesson, but God, I pray, Lord, you'd slow it down a little bit, for that they would understand the things about Daniel.
[3:27] God, help us all to dare to be a Daniel this morning. Help us to be more like you. And Lord, help us to glean some things out of thy book. Lord, thank you that we can be gathered around the book. And not just because of fellowship, Lord, but because of your word.
[3:41] Without the word, there is no king. There's no power, Lord. God, I want to emphasize the word this morning. And I pray, God, you put me out of the way, and you fill me with your spirit, God.
[3:51] And help me to portray the things that you want me to portray to the people of Bible Baptists here, Lord, that they would get a blessing. I pray, God, you bless it in Jesus Christ's name. Amen. Amen.
[4:02] And so he started out, but also he gained preeminence among the wise men of Babylon. Look at verse 17. Daniel had preeminence among the children. In verse 17, he had preeminence among the wise men.
[4:14] As for these four children, God gave them knowledge and skill and all learning and wisdom. And Daniel had understanding and all vision and dreams. Verse 18. Now at the end of the days that the king had said he should bring them in, then the prince of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar.
[4:32] And the king communed with them, and among them all was found, none like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Therefore stood they before the king. In verse 20.
[4:42] And in all matters of wisdom and understanding that the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrallers that were in all his realm.
[4:54] And so he had preeminence. He was one of the best that they had to offer. He was also given power over all of Babylon. Look at Daniel chapter 2. Daniel chapter 2, verse 48.
[5:10] He had all power. He's given power over Babylon. And that's a big responsibility. Look at verse 48. Then the king made Daniel a great man and gave him many great gifts and made him a ruler over the whole province of Babylon.
[5:28] And the chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon. Then Daniel requested of the king, and he sat Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon.
[5:39] But Daniel sat in the gate of the king. And so he had power. He received similar power over Medo-Persia. Look at Daniel chapter 6. And so he's already strengthening that power just by his understanding, just by the gods giving him a little bit more.
[5:55] Daniel chapter 6. Look at verse 1. It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom and 120 princes, which should be over the whole kingdom, and over these three presidents, of whom Daniel was first, that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage.
[6:17] Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes because of an excellent spirit was in him. And the king thought to himself over the whole realm, man, Christian, I want to be like that.
[6:30] I want to be more preferred than everybody else in this world, the politicians, the mayor, the chief of the police. I want to be preferred in God's sight because Daniel was preferred above them all.
[6:43] And as a Christian, you are preferred. You're preferred more than the politician out there. You're preferred because you're a child of God. On your worst day, you're a child of God. And that's a good thing to have.
[6:53] And so Daniel had that. How was Daniel able to reach these positions in power and influence without compromising his position as a godly man? And so a close look at the book of Daniel reveals his secret.
[7:07] And he shows how we too can be successful without selling our souls. We notice that even as a young teenager, Daniel purposed in his heart. We read that and go back to Daniel chapter 1.
[7:17] And so he purposed in his heart. So Christian, I want to ask you this morning, can you purpose in your heart? Daniel purposed in his heart.
[7:28] A young boy in a strange land, Daniel was immediately faced with a challenge to violate God's law by eating the king's food. And that's a very simple thing to say no to if it's wrong.
[7:42] I mean, we say that a lot. It's kind of hard to say that at a buffet, to say no to. But verse 8, it says, But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat.
[7:55] He shouldn't be touching it. He's not going to defile himself. But God would want some Christians this morning to study, to learn some things of just what to purpose your heart for.
[8:07] Purpose your heart for the right things. You will never go wrong. It's a good thing to grasp. Despite his youth and the obvious pressures to conform, Daniel purposed in his heart to uphold the law of God, no matter the cost.
[8:21] Because of his willingness to put God first, God granted him favor. Look at verse 9. We read it in verse 9 of chapter 1. Now God had brought Daniel into favor and tender love with the prince of the eunuchs.
[8:33] And so God gave him favor because he had a good heart. He purposed right. And if you want some favor of God, you've got to purpose yourself. And as a lesson to learn, maybe what are you going to purpose your heart towards?
[8:47] Be more efficient in church. Be more active in church. Give more to missions or support local brethren. Just those little type of things that you could purpose your heart for that are right things.
[8:59] Even for wrong things, you could still purpose your heart not to touch for. How God did this is not explained, but it happened in the case of Joseph. Look at Genesis chapter 39. Joseph purposed in his heart as well.
[9:11] And it goes on throughout the Bible. And you see men, you see Jesus, Jesus Christ, the greatest example there is. He purposed in his heart to be about the Father's business. And I know we all have a lot of businesses and things like that we have to manage and run and do.
[9:27] But Jesus wasn't concerned about all that. Even though that took place, he was concerned more about the Father's business, not his dad's business of carpentry. Look at Genesis chapter 39.
[9:38] Look at verse 1. And Joseph was brought down to Egypt, and Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him of the hands of the Ishmaelites, which had brought him down thither.
[9:51] And the Lord was with Joseph, and he was a prosperous man. And he was in the house of his master, the Egyptian. And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.
[10:05] You know, bless God that all the blessings that come from us, to us, are from God. And Joseph got a lot of that. Joseph got a lot of prosper because he was favored of God.
[10:15] Are you favored of God? Are you a favored child of God? Daniel was. Joseph was. It happened a lot. Look at verse 4. And Joseph found grace in his sight, and he served him, and made him overseer over his house.
[10:30] And all that he had, he put into his hand. God's given you everything he has, and he put it in your hand. God gave you everything in this world that you have to look forward to, and it's a King James Bible, and that gave you everything.
[10:42] He gave you the words of God. What are you doing with it? He gave it to you to prosper. That book is there to prosper you. I'm not for prosper preaching this morning. But our teaching is just, but that book is there to prosper you.
[10:54] Spiritually, physically, emotionally, any way you want to put it, it's there to prosper you if you read it, if you apply it, if you practicalize it. By putting God first, God blessed Joseph in such a way that favorably impressed the others.
[11:08] Every child of God needs to be a person of purpose. No one respects a wishy-washy person. Brother Wolski texted me this morning and says, you still on your way? I said, I'm 15 minutes out, brother.
[11:18] And I replied, faithful. Just so that you can understand, hey, are you going to be there? Hey, yeah, yeah. I'm going to be faithful. I'm going to do everything I can to be faithful. You don't have to worry about if so-and-so is going to be there.
[11:32] They're going to be there. You shouldn't have to worry about, is your wife going to keep loving you? Your wife's going to love you. As long as she wears that ring and still respects you and you're still the one, that's it. And it should be that way.
[11:43] You should be faithful. Joseph was faithful. Daniel was faithful. Whereas a strong sense of purpose often breeds respect and admiration in others. What should the purpose of the Christian be?
[11:54] And you may be wondering that. What can I do to be, what's my purpose? Look at Matthew chapter 6. Jesus Christ makes it perfect. Makes it super clear.
[12:05] Matthew chapter 6. Matthew chapter 6.
[12:19] Look at verse, where am I? Verse 33. There is to be a Daniel this morning. The Bible says, Matthew chapter 6, verse 33.
[12:33] But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for tomorrow, for tomorrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is of the evil thereof.
[12:45] So your purpose is to be about the kingdom of God. That's spiritual things. That's the word of God. That's doing everything He's told a Christian to do. And I don't need to beat that too hard.
[12:57] You guys have a good pastor. You've been in the church long enough. You should know what the Lord wants you to do. Doing whatever it takes. We'll get to that next hour, but doing whatever it takes.
[13:08] If it goes means out of your way, out of your way, go. Do it. Spend some gas. Spend some gas. Go out of your way to make someone feel special, or your pastor feel special, or be supportive in every way.
[13:22] That's your purpose, the kingdom of God. To seek the will of God and fulfill it in our lives, no matter the circumstance. As Jesus promised, this will guarantee God's favor towards us, and in turn likely gain us favor in the eyes of those around us.
[13:38] So will you dare to be a Daniel, and be a person with a purpose like he had? No matter how young one may be, it is never too early to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
[13:48] Throughout his life, Daniel not only had a strong sense of purpose, but Daniel was a man of principle. And that's very hard to find these days. Some teenagers, some kids, or some young people that don't really care, they don't really have the right principles in mind.
[14:05] But Daniel had the right principle. Look at Daniel, go back to Daniel chapter 1. You might want to hold your place to return to places. He refused to compromise his convictions. And you ought to be like that.
[14:16] You shouldn't compromise your convictions. If you have a conviction on something you shouldn't be doing, you shouldn't compromise on it. No, I don't feel like that's what I should be doing. If it's wrong, it's sin.
[14:29] If it's doubt, it's sin. It's automatic. God put a good conscience in your heart to know some things, whether it's right or wrong. If it's doubt, you should just never do it.
[14:40] Nine times out of ten, that's a good rule of thumb. I can't tell you how many times that have saved me from making a foolish decision. I made them still, but I've learned some things. And so Daniel was a man of principle.
[14:53] As a young man, by refusing something simple or by refusing the king's meat or drink, the wine, look at Daniel chapter 1, verse 8.
[15:04] He purpose in his heart that he would not defile himself. Something simple. Daniel knew that it was something simple in his heart that he wasn't going to touch it. He wouldn't be near it. And I don't want to just bore you with that, but that was a big deal.
[15:16] That made Daniel set apart. When everyone else was willing to take the mark or willing to take that king's meat or to do whatever society told them, it was Daniel that said, no, I'm not touching that.
[15:27] Where they told him not to pray in the window, he purposed in his heart not to pray three times a day. How is your prayer life?
[15:40] That's one of the later points. But Daniel was a man of principle. As an old man, by refusing the gifts of Belshazzar, he kept his convictions. Look at Daniel chapter 5. As a young man, he kept his convictions.
[15:52] As an old man, he kept his convictions. So in everywhere in between, you should be able to keep your convictions. You shouldn't compromise. Look at Daniel chapter 5, verse 13.
[16:04] That's why I love the Bible. The Bible makes it so clear and so simple to what not to do and what to do. He has these examples here in the Bible, and thank God for them. And I'm glad they're there, because if they weren't there, I wouldn't know what to do.
[16:18] Daniel chapter 5, verse 13. The Bible says, Then was Daniel brought in before the king, and the king spake and said unto Daniel, Art thou that, Daniel, which art the children of the captivity of Judah, whom the king, my father, brought out of Jewry?
[16:32] I have even heard of thee, that the spirit of the gods is in thee, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom is found in thee.
[16:45] And now the wise men, the astrologers, have been brought in before me, that they should read this writing, and make known unto me the interpretation of thereof.
[16:56] But they could not show the interpretation of the thing. And I have heard of thee, that thou canst make interpretation and dissolve doubt.
[17:07] Now if thou canst read the writing and make known to me the interpretation thereof, thou shalt be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about thy neck, and shalt be the third ruler in the kingdom.
[17:18] Then Daniel answered and said before the king, Let thy gifts be to thyself, and give thy rewards to another. Yet I will read the writing unto the king, and make known to him the interpretation.
[17:29] O thou king the most high, God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father, and he starts reading it. But do you know what he says? He's like, I'll tell you what it says, but I'm not for the stuff you're going to give me. You can keep it.
[17:39] Because I don't care for it. I'm going to show you that God, not the gods, but the God, has put in me to know this, and everybody else, everywhere else you're searching, doesn't have it.
[17:53] Any other church that doesn't have a King James Bible doesn't have the Word of God. And I believe that. You compare them, you stack them up to each other, and you'll find that what I said is true.
[18:03] We talked about it this morning, me and my wife, when I pastored a church in Chanute, Kansas, which is middle of nowhere, man, Dorothy land. There's a lady in the church that was a Roman Catholic, and she had a New Age Bible.
[18:20] And because I kicked the religion of Catholicism, and I said how vain and how deceitful and how going to hell it's going to be, and they didn't like that. But because they can take in whatever they want, and like they do in New Age churches, and today, the churches today, they take the different things of Calvinism, and dispensationalism, and hyper-dispensations, and baptism, and they throw it all into Christianity, and they say, oh, this is Christian life.
[18:44] No, it's not. Because they don't have a final authority, they can't back it to Scripture. You have in your lap, I hope, this morning, that you have the final Word of God. And you can back it with what it says.
[18:55] Well, what does the Bible say about how to treat your children? How does it say about this conviction? What does it say? And you know what it says. At least you should know what it says. And so Daniel purposed in his heart, and he was a man of principle.
[19:08] People admire people of principle. Outwardly, they may ridicule them, but inwardly, they wish they had the same intestinal fortitude. As an old man, he refused the gifts of Belshazzar.
[19:20] Under the threat of persecution by refusing to obey the decree of Darius in Daniel chapter 6. He didn't care. It was his conviction. He didn't compromise it.
[19:35] And when they need someone that can be trusted and dependent upon to carry through with a signed tax, who do you think they'll turn to? He turned to the magicians and the philosophers, and they couldn't do it.
[19:45] If you keep your principles, you keep your convictions without compromise, you'll find that God, some people, will turn to you for it. Your lost coworkers, and someone's on their deathbed, and they're going to the Catholic priests, and they're going all to different things.
[19:58] They know who has Jesus Christ and who has God on them. Then they'll. And I can't tell you how many times I've been called out of nowhere. Hey, you don't remember me, but we used to work so-and-so together.
[20:09] Can you help me with this? Why do they call me? I'm just an idiot kid who doesn't know anything. Why are they calling me? Because God put in there, God, if you have God on your side, and you have your convictions in check with the Bible, there's some people going to look to you for answers.
[20:28] And I hope they do. I hope you make yourself available for them to look for answers. You older folks in here, young people are going to look for you for some answers. I have a lot of friends and a lot of people that I look for just in everything, in the Bible, and I meet people daily that I talk to.
[20:46] I'm a mobile detailer. I detail for a guy who owns a couple of real estate offices up in Palos Verdes. And just to be able to click with him, just be able to talk to him about what he does, and it's great to have those type of clients.
[21:01] But they know, first off, I'm a Christian. They know that first off. They don't know it. I'm going to show at the very end of it. We have a guy in our church, and thank God for it. I did a motorcycle detail, and I got to talk to him a little bit about the Bible.
[21:14] Because his license plate says, you may ride close, but Jesus is closer. And he had that on him. So it opened the door for me to talk to him. And now he's a member of our church. Just little things like that, just because I'm not compromising for the gain of the world or the money, but me to put the gospel out first.
[21:30] And it's a blessing. And his son's going to camp, and they're growing. They're getting baptized. They're just in it. But you know what? If I didn't make myself available, and I didn't compromise on my convictions, well, business is business.
[21:42] Or Christian is Christian. No, they're the same. And so Daniel was a man of principle. God also admires individuals who will stand by their principles and by their words. Look at Psalms chapter 15.
[21:54] Psalms 15. Are you going to stand by it? You have very little people today that will stand by their words. They're so wishy-washy. They're so entangled with what the news media says that they'll just go with what they say.
[22:07] That new mask mandate's out there. And you have to wear a mask indoors. We're really going to go back to that? I know what the Bible says, and that's between me and God. And I'm going to do what God tells me to do, and not Gavin Newsom.
[22:21] Amen. All right. Psalms 15, verse 1. Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? Who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, that's who, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart.
[22:36] He that backbideth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbor, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbor, in whose eyes a vile person is contemned. But he honoreth them that fear the Lord.
[22:50] He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not. He that putteth not out his money to usury, nor taketh reward against the innocent. He that doeth these things shall never be moved.
[23:01] So those admired individuals, that's who, those are the ones that are being carried out with a task. Those are the ones that are imaginable by their principles. Our society is in great need of people with principles.
[23:14] Those who will dare to be a Daniel just by the base of one person, and everybody to emulate will be a lot better for it, I think. And also to demonstrate by example the value of being led by a principle rather than by price.
[23:31] Or pride. Are not only highly valued by God, but also by their fellow man. But having purpose and principles, not all. Another element for true success is needed.
[23:43] What element can be seen when we observe that Daniel was a man of purity? That's a big deal, Christian. For you. For me. Purity is a big deal.
[23:55] This world is full of filth. And it's a big deal for us to stay pure. Or Daniel stayed pure. Look at Daniel chapter 6. His opponents could not find any fault.
[24:07] Can someone find fault in you as a Christian? You call yourself a Christian, and you're out drinking. You're out smoking. You're out chewing. You're out doing things that a Christian shouldn't be doing.
[24:19] You know, their preparation of worship. I have a series. I did a series back on worship in John chapter 4. The Bible says there would be a day where true worshippers shall come. And the preparation of worship.
[24:30] And you go back through Judges and what a priest would put on to go to the temple. And what they would dress themselves with. The effort that they would put into.
[24:41] And someone else would see a priest walking down the hall and say, down the road and say, that guy is going to the temple. Can they see that with you, Christian? I know we live in the wild, wild west.
[24:53] I know we live in an age where we can wear khakis and flip flops and just whatever. Can they see that you're going to church? And you see a suit, and you automatically think the guy's a lawyer or a detective.
[25:06] Back in the day, you see a suit, that guy's going to church. And now today, you see a guy in flip flops and a collared shirt and everything, and I guess they're going to church. The purity on it. God, I want to wear my best for God.
[25:18] I want to do what's best because it's in my heart to make him look good. Make my church look good by how I'm dressed. Maybe something stupid and simple as that. If they can see on the outward, maybe they get to talk to you on the inside.
[25:31] You're wearing skulls and rock and roll and the world all tatted up on your shirts and stuff. You think they're going to dress you as a Christian? They're going to dress you as another California hippie. And you don't got to look like a choir boy.
[25:45] I'm not saying that, but I'm just saying you've got to look the part as a Christian. Daniel was a man of purity. Daniel chapter 6, look at verse 1. Verse 1. And it pleased Darius to set over the kingdom and 120 princes, which should be over the whole kingdom.
[25:59] And of these three presidents, of whom Daniel was first, that the princes might be a counsel unto them, and the king should have no damage. Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him.
[26:15] And the king thought to set him over the whole realm. Then the presidents of the princes and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom. But they could find none occasion nor fault.
[26:26] For as much as he was faithful, key word there, neither was there any error or fault found in him. Amen, Christian. Is that you? Is that a lesson you can kind of apply to your heart and your life?
[26:40] That they're going to find no fault. My lost coworkers are not going to find no fault in me. I'm not going to talk like they talk. I'm not going to laugh at their dirty jokes. I'm not going to be around them when they say, let's go to the bar or let's go to the restaurant.
[26:53] And let's go sit at the bar where there's no way. No. Your convictions are your convictions. They can go sit at the bar. A Christian should be sitting at the bar. My wife loves to go to Chili's.
[27:05] And a lot of times you go to Chili's and there's two sides. You've got the bar and you've got the restaurant side. And there's always a wait for the restaurant side. Hardly ever you can ever find a... There's booths in the bar area and you can sit at the bar.
[27:16] And usually there's no wait. Because nobody wants to sit over there. And so there will be times me and it's just her. And we're in a time crunch to get dinner before the movie or something. And we'll be sitting at the bar and I'm just feeling filthy, man.
[27:27] I'm just... I've got some stumbling guy stumbling around me and talking loud. I can't fellowship with my wife. It's just a stupid conviction. And sometimes it just degrades.
[27:40] And I purpose in my heart not to do it again. I went to Cheesecake Factory up in Palm Springs the other day with my uncle. And my uncle's... I got a table. We're waiting 30 minutes. My uncle's 15 minutes out.
[27:50] Our table, we're about to sit down. As soon as he comes, he goes, go get a table at the bar. This is Cheesecake Factory. And he got nice, fancy glasses everywhere. People all dress nice on their lunch break. And I told my uncle, I'm not sitting at the bar.
[28:03] And he goes, no, why not? I'm in a rush. I don't care. You could be in a rush. I'm not sitting at the bar. And I'm with my brother Gavin. My brother Gavin's just completely off in the world and into rock and roll, death metal music.
[28:14] And he's just in it. And he said, what's the big deal? And I'll tell you what's the big deal. You see them over there, they don't care that they're at a bar. They like that stuff. I don't like that stuff. I don't want to be around that stuff.
[28:25] That stuff ruined my family. That stuff is no good for me. It's my conviction. I'm not going to compromise it. Something simple as that. My family comes to town. You can come in town all you want. But I'm going to church.
[28:36] If you come in on a Sunday, don't expect me to wait for you. I'm going to church. You can come or not come. That's my conviction. What's yours? Daniel had some convictions to find no fault.
[28:46] And they found no fault in him. They said it. The Bible says it. It's there. It must be true, right? Daniel was a man of purity. This would help to explain his rise to position of great responsibility and power. Of course, his purity in business affairs was related to his over.
[28:59] He said he was above the princes and the presidents. In the secular world, he was above them. His overall purpose is to please God first. And the fact that as a man of principle, he could be trusted.
[29:13] The Christians is also to maintain purity of conduct. 1 Timothy 4.12, whether old or young, maintain that purity. Slave or free, Titus 2 verse 9, maintain that purity.
[29:27] People who maintain purity in their dealings with others are often given positions of great responsibility and privilege because they can't be trusted to use them wisely. Yes, Daniel was a man of purpose, principle, and purity.
[29:41] And how the world needs more like him. But the element that likely tied all these together in such a way to receive blessings from God and favor from a man is the fact that Daniel was a man of prayer.
[29:54] Daniel was a man of prayer. Daniel chapter 6 verse 10. Daniel chapter 6 verse 10. Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed. That's the writing saying that no one can pray.
[30:09] They say, well, Daniel's over there praying three times a day instead of praying to you. And he made this writing. If you make this writing and he goes against it, we'll set him up to find the fault in him. And he'll have to compromise.
[30:20] He'll have to find fault. And he'll lose all principle, all respect, all power, all purity. If you just sign this decree and the decree is out there and Daniel says, I'm not doing it.
[30:32] I don't care if it's signed. I have in my heart to pray and I'm going to pray whether a decree is made or not. What are they going to do when the Democrats in California take away your Bible? And took it away from schools already.
[30:44] What are you going to do when then? When they take it away from you now, are you going to hold on to it? Are you going to read it more or are you just going to let it go? Well, it's not a big deal. I don't need it. I was talking. We watched, me and my dad, I'm almost done here.
[30:55] My dad and I, we watched that TV show alone. It's on the Discovery, your history channel. It's a cool show. You get on this little section in Canada and you're just nothing.
[31:05] You get to bring 10 things on this deserted thing and you have to outwit everybody. You have to outlast everybody. It's not Survivor, but you have to survive on just the elements of the nature. So you have to hunt.
[31:16] You have to fish. You have to build your own cabin. You have to keep your own body weight. It's an extreme thing. And I'm saying, and there's guys out there, there's a musician on there. There's a couple weirdos on there.
[31:27] There's a hippie in there about science and no other nature and all this stuff. Me personally, if I was on doing that, there was one thing on my first on my checklist.
[31:38] And I started talking to my dad about it. He's like, you have 10 things. You're going to bring your Bible? I says, yeah, I'm going to bring my Bible. I will lose out on the one main thing that I'm not supposed to bring.
[31:49] And I'll sacrifice something. Why? Because that book got me through some rough times in order to get me through those days of being alone and hungry and depressed. It's done it. It's done it before. And Daniel had a purpose in his heart to pray.
[32:04] Do you have that purpose? He had a purpose in his heart to pray. Look at verse 10. It says, now when Daniel knew that the writing was assigned, he went into his house and his windows being opened in the chamber toward Jerusalem.
[32:18] He kneeled upon his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God and did it for a time. You know, I love that passage and I have it right there highlighted. And his windows opened.
[32:31] He could still pray without the windows being opened. No one would know. Right? Right? No one would know. No one would find fault. But he made sure they knew that they're walking by Daniel's house and those windows are open.
[32:45] You know what he's doing. They've seen it. They've seen it 30 times a week. 35 times a week. They've seen it every day.
[32:56] But Daniel said, you know what? I'm purposing in my heart to pray. And Daniel was a man of prayer. He knelt in prayer, a demonstration of humility. He prayed three times a day, a demonstration of his continual dependence upon God.
[33:08] And he gave thanks in the midst of persecution. A demonstration of his gratitude and the fact that he had not lost sight of God's blessing. His prayers were a custom since early days, the Bible says.
[33:19] Demonstrating his persistence and faithfulness in his service to God. It is not likely that his custom to pray so diligently helped him to remain a man of purpose, a man of principle, and a man of purity, despite his rise to power and preeminence over the empire.
[33:34] Christians would do well to follow Daniel's example. Let us learn the lesson that the finest of God's servants must maintain regular and fixed prayer habits in order to continue steadfast in the devotion of the Lord.
[33:47] And as Christians, we're supposed to pray often. The Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5.17, pray without ceasing. It means no stop, no hiccup, no compromise.
[34:01] I'm praying. I'm going to do this thing. My mom, she's 80 years old. And along, maybe 30, 40 years ago, she made a pact with God to read her Bible every day.
[34:15] Every day. Man, every year, every watch night service, dad will get up and say, how many of you read your Bible more than 10 times? Please stand. So they stand. How many men keep standing if you read it more than 20 times?
[34:28] Keep standing. 30 times, keep standing. And mom stayed up over 30 times reading that Bible through to through. Man, I want that. I want that.
[34:40] I want to purpose my heart to read that Bible. Something so foolish in the world's mind. Are you going to read this book over and over again? I get on my wife. She reads those books, Hunger Games. She reads them every series, I guess.
[34:51] I don't know. She just reads them a lot. And I'm like, you're reading it again. How many times have you read it? How many times have you read it? She just enjoys it. She enjoys her Bible. She enjoys reading other things. Do you enjoy your Bible? Do you enjoy God's blessing in your life by having no compromise?
[35:05] You know, in our efforts to live purposeful, principled, and pure lives are not what they should be. Could an undisciplined prayer life be the reason?
[35:19] Are we willing to dare to be a Daniel in regards to prayer? There's a false assumption in this world. To get ahead in this world, one must conform to the sinful practices of this world. But even today, there are many Christians who demonstrate that when one dares to be a Daniel, they can succeed in the affairs of men without selling their souls to the world.
[35:38] So the lesson this morning, will you dare to be a Daniel? When you sing that song, Dare to be a Daniel, I don't know when Russ will ever sing it, ever. But if you ever know that song and you ever read it, and you ever read those words, and you listen to that, that song speaks, man.
[35:54] So will you dare to be a Daniel? By becoming a person of purpose. By becoming a person of principle.
[36:05] Of purity. Of prayer. All P's. All P's. Simple. So Christian, I want to discipline. I want to exhort you to try to do that.
[36:18] Your lesson this morning, your homework, or if you're Sunday school, or whatever you want to call it, dare to be a Daniel. You'll find that you won't be wrong. You'll find that you'll be just alright, I think, in the Christian life.
[36:30] You'll get ahead. You've seen it. The Bible says it. And hope is a blessing. I hope you can kind of fixate on that. You can. And of course, I have been listening today.
[36:47] Good on. You're really working on this project. We'll let where it went. And it's done. I'm happy.